Why Did Samsung Electronics and SK hynix Fall Despite NVIDIA's 9% Surge? Foreign Investors Dumped 580 Billion Won

[Financial News] The KOSPI fell to the 6,800 level on foreign selling. NVIDIA surged overnight on Wall Street after posting strong earnings, but domestic semiconductor stocks gave back part of the previous day's gains. As heavyweight stocks such as Samsung Electronics and SK hynix weakened, buying shifted toward theme stocks tied to K-beauty, COVID-19, and sovereign AI.
At 11:14 a.m. on the 28th, the KOSPI was at 6,833.49, down 78.88 points, or 1.14%, from the previous trading day. The index opened at 6,846.54 and later fell as low as 6,805.01 during the session. The previous day, the KOSPI had closed up 1.53% at 6,912.37, but it gave up the 6,900 level again within a day.
Foreign selling is weighing on the index. According to the Korea Exchange, foreigners had net sold 577.5 billion won worth of shares on the main board at that time. Institutions also posted a net selling position of 36.7 billion won. In contrast, individuals bought a net 12.2 billion won, while other corporations bought a net 601.1 billion won.
Large semiconductor stocks, which have a major influence on the index, fell together. Samsung Electronics was trading at 260,000 won, down 2.26% from the previous session. It briefly slipped to 258,500 won during the day. SK hynix was also down 1.45% at 1,705,000 won.
Although NVIDIA jumped 8.74% on Wall Street overnight and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose 2.33%, the upbeat mood did not carry over to domestic semiconductor stocks. Market participants believe expectations for NVIDIA's strong results had already been largely priced into Samsung Electronics and SK hynix shares the previous day, leading to profit-taking. The possibility of additional U.S. semiconductor tariffs and elevated Treasury yields are also being cited as headwinds.
While large-cap stocks took a breather, market funds moved into individual themes. Kim Joo-yeon, a researcher at Mirae Asset Securities, described the session as one in which "money is flowing into themes amid weakness in the index led by top-cap semiconductor stocks."
K-beauty stocks stood out for their strength. As cosmetics exports have diversified from China to North America and Europe, and expectations have grown for increased spending by foreign tourists, Cosmecca Korea, APR, Amorepacific Corporation, and PharmaResearch all moved higher.
Buying also poured into COVID-19-related stocks. As domestic infection indicators, including the COVID-19 virus detection rate, have risen again, diagnostic kit and emergency medicine stocks are gaining strength.
Stocks tied to sovereign AI also strengthened after news that the government selected the operator for its "AI for Everyone" project. Buying flowed into Naver, SDS, Kakao Corp., and Hancom Inc. after the SK Telecom-Kakao-KT consortium was chosen as the final operator. The government plans to launch the full service within the year after a beta test.
Refining stocks also rose on expectations of stronger refining margins and improved earnings in the second half. By contrast, Samsung Biologics weakened as investors reacted to its decision to raise 3.9 trillion won through a rights offering to finance the acquisition of PolyPeptide Group.
A securities industry official said, "Now that the market has absorbed the major event of NVIDIA's earnings, sector and stock-specific differentiation is likely to continue for the time being rather than a broad index-led move." The official added, "Since the KOSPI has repeatedly tried to break through the 7,000 level recently, foreign fund flows and the direction of large semiconductor stocks will determine whether the market can extend its gains."


[email protected] Choi Du-seon Reporter